Going to update for those who are interested…
Cooking tender, juicy chicken breast with almost no seasonings:
- Butterfly all chicken breasts for thickness <1/2" (for even/fast cook time)
- Use Jaccard Meat Tenderizer all over the pieces (for tenderization)
- Brine (1 TBSP salt per cup water) chicken breast for at least 24 hours before cooking. (can be frozen this way so it brines as it thaws!)
- Dry chicken breast after brining
- Season liberally with salt and garlic powder (and any other seasonings you want)
- Lightly coat chicken breast in flour
- Heat a heavy-bottomed pan with enough olive oil to pan fry until it smokes
- Cook chicken in pan, abour 4-5 minutes per side. Do not disturb chicken until ready to flip. Should have a golden brown crust when flipped.
- Remove from pan and let rest 10min before cutting
This has made my meal prep chicken better than really any other chicken I’ve had - whether from a restaraunt or otherwise. It’s also not very time-consuming if the brining process is begun when you first unpack the chicken.